An inverter of a hybrid vehicle or an electric vehicle is a device that converts direct current (DC) power of a high-voltage battery into alternating current (AC) power for driving a motor.
A function of converting DC power into AC power is performed by a gate board controlling an insulated gate bipolar transistor (IGBT) switch included in the inverter according to a command of a control board.
Moreover, a connection part of the inverter and a battery is referred to as a high voltage input part, and a connection part of the inverter and the motor is referred to as a high voltage output part.
In a female-male connector connection method, a female connector and a male connector are connected to each other by a cable that is configured with a high-voltage connector.
In the female-male connector connection method, when the female connector is connected to the male connector, two the connectors are connected to each other by connecting a female terminal to a male terminal. When a contact area between the female terminal and the male terminal is maintained as a certain size or more, a flow of electricity is stable.
Moreover, in a method of connecting the female connector to the male connector, a capacity of a high-voltage connector is determined based on an amount of current flowing in the cable, and as the current increases, a size and weight of the high-voltage connector increase.
In a bus bar direct-connection method, one bus bar is fastened to another bus bar by a bolt.
A size of each of the bus bars is determined based on an amount of current flowing in the cable, and when the battery, the inverter, and the motor are implemented as one body or are disposed at a short distance, the high-voltage connector is usefully used.
Since the one bus bar is directly fastened to the other bus bar, a contact area between the bus bars is large and is useful for an internal performance of a vehicle and a vehicle environment such as vibration and the like.
However, in the above-described method of connecting the female connector to the male connector, since the female terminal and the male terminal should be large in order for a high current to flow, a size of a connector increases, and the contact area between the female terminal and the male terminal should satisfy a certain size at an actual vehicle environment at which vibration and the like occur.
Due to such limitations, a bus bar direct-connection method is mainly used for a high-current connection.
In the above-described direct-connection method, assembly is difficult because a bolt connection is required in assembling parts of a vehicle, and separate measures are needed for a waterproofing function and an electric shield function of each of the high voltage input part and the high voltage output part.